Gale sat slumped at the kitchen table, face buried in his hands as he tried desperately to think a way out of this hole he and his family had been thrown into.

It had been a little over 48 hours since his Ma had passed away. Eight hours since her funeral. 50 hours since he last slept.

The sickest part of this cruel joke was that he hardly had any time to grieve the loss of his last remaining parent, whom he had loved endlessly, because he was consumed by the unrelenting fear of having his three younger siblings stolen from him.

What was he supposed to tell CPS if-when they showed up at their doorstep? How could he, a 20-year-old mechanic with no college education argue that he could take care of a 6-year-old little girl, and two teenage boys?

The money would be tight-they'd have to move into a one bedroom apartment probably, but if Rory took on a part-time job and Posy was pulled out of her dance class, they could make it work.

But would the fucking system believe that?

He hears a whimper come from down the hall, and sighs. Posy is just a baby, crying for her Ma in her sleep, she can't survive foster care. Then there was Vick, who was too gullible and trusting for his own good. Even Rory, who liked to walk around thinking he was the shit, would be unable to make it in such a dire environment.

His musings of despair are interrupted by a frantic knock on the door. Gale glances at the clock and frowns. Who on Earth was stopping by this late to pay their condolences?

More than annoyed, Gale stalks over to the door and flings it open, ready to bark in the visitor's face.

All plans of barking disappear at the snow-caked sight of Madge Undersee standing in front of him.

Madge was Katniss's best friend, and a piano player and Posy's dance studio pianist. Gale steered clear of her-he had no interest in becoming buddy-buddy with the Mayor's daughter when paying the rent was a struggle every month, so he was more than confused to see her now, in the middle of a blizzard, on the eve of his Mother's passing.

Before he can say anything, though, Madge takes him by surprise once more.

"Marry me."

Gale blinks and shakes his head. It's the lack of sleep, he concludes, paired with the grief, that has him losing his goddamn mind because he just hallucinated Madge Undersee proposing to him.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Madge asks self-consciously.

"Sorry," he says gruffly, clearing his throat. "What did you just say?"

Madge's bravado is lost and she looks down at her snow-covered boots. "I think you should marry me."

"Wha-" Gale garbles, before shutting his eyes tightly. Couldn't life let him handle one fucking hurdle at a time?

"I can get a job at Daddy's office, and land myself a decent enough paycheck that if I was your wife, the combined income would be enough that you wouldn't have to lose either three of your siblings."

Gale's eyes snap open at her words and looks at her closer than he ever has. Her head is covered by a purple hat, but the hair that tumbles out of it is blonde and gently curling, sprinkled with white snowflakes. Her face is heart-shaped, and she has large, innocent looking eyes.

"It's freezing," is all Gale says, stepping aside so that she can step inside. She does so, but stands in the foyer shyly, hands clasped tightly in front of her.

Once he has the door shut, he looks at her once more with his arms crossed against his chest. He can tell she's intimidated by him, especially with the height difference of over a foot between them, but he can't let this pass without careful scrutiny.

"What's in it for you?" Gale asks directly, carefully gauging her reaction.

She nods as if she had been expecting this. "I know Posy personally, and I'd hate for her to be torn from her family. But as for personal gain, if I was married, Daddy won't be able to ship me off to college like how he wants, and I'll get to stay here and continue doing what I love."

"You'll be working for your Dad, not your old job anymore," Gale points out immediately.

Madge shrugs. "I can work there on the weekends. Besides, I wouldn't mind the extra time with Daddy."

Gale scrutinizes her closely, before coming to a decision.

"No."

"Don't you want to protect your family?" Madge asks desperately.

"I don't accept charity," Gale snarls. "My family won't be your little social work case."

"This isn't charity!" Madge argues. "I swear, this is something I really want to do and-"

"Miss. Undersee?"

The soft voice silences both of them, and they look over to see Posy's tear-streaked face, her rag doll clutched tightly in her hand.

"Hi Posy," Madge greets sadly.

Posy drops the doll and sprints towards her teacher, launching herself into her arms.

Madge, to his surprise, is able to catch her easily and even pulls her into a tight embrace as Posy sobs into her hair.

"I know," Madge soothes as Posy mumbles nonsensical words. She takes him by surprise again when he sees her own eyes are wet. "I know, love."

Gale watches, feeling both useless and relieved as Madge is able to calm Posy back down to a calmer state, and he can finally take Posy from her arms to tuck back into bed.

He's making his way back to the living room, when Rory and Vick's room's door is suddenly opened. Standing in the doorway is Rory, and Gale is able to tell immediately that his brother hasn't been able to sleep either.

"Don't fuck this up," is all he says. Gale nods.

Once he's back in Madge's sight, she immediately gets up from her spot on the couch and begins talking. "Look I know I've made a mess of this all, but the thing is, my Mom died when I was young, too, and I-"

"I'll do it," Gale interrupts her. "I'll marry you."

A/N:

Being brought over from the archive since I finally retrieved my login. Bi-weekly update until everything is brought over, then updated whenever the newest chapter is done.